April 2017 – Oral Cancer News

European Commission approves Bristol-Myers Squibb’s Opdivo (nivolumab) for squamous cell cancer of the head and neck in adults progressing on or after platinum-based therapy

Source: pipelinereview.com Author: Bristol-Myers Squibb Bristol-Myers Squibb Company today announced that the European Commission (EC) has approved Opdivo (nivolumab) as monotherapy for the treatment of squamous cell cancer of the head and neck (SCCHN) in adults progressing on or after platinum-based therapy. Opdivo is the first and only Immuno-Oncology (I-O) treatment that demonstrated in a Phase 3 trial a significant improvement in overall survival (OS) for these patients. “Adult patients with squamous cell cancer of the head and neck that progresses on or after platinum-based therapy are fighting a debilitating and hard-to-treat disease that is associated with a very poor prognosis,” said Kevin Harrington, M.D., Ph.D., professor in Biological Cancer Therapies at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and a consultant clinical oncologist at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust in London. “As an oncologist who helps patients deal with this terrible disease, I hope that nivolumab will now be made available as widely as possible, offering this group of patients a new treatment option that can potentially improve their overall survival." The approval was based on results from CheckMate -141, a global Phase 3, open-label, randomized trial, first published in The New England Journal of Medicine last October, which evaluated Opdivo versus investigator’s choice of therapy in patients aged 18 years and above with recurrent or metastatic, platinum-refractory SCCHN who had tumor progression during or within six months of receiving platinum-based therapy administered in the adjuvant, neo-adjuvant, primary or metastatic setting. Investigator’s choice of therapy included methotrexate, docetaxel, or [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2017-04-30T12:46:16-07:00April, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

‘Happy Days’ star Erin Moran’s Husband Reveals Tragic Details about Cancer

Author: Marah Alindogan Source: www.aol.com Date: Apr 25th 2017 Erin Moran's husband, Steve Fleischmann, revealed heartbreaking details about the months leading up to her death in a Facebook post on Tuesday. New evidence from the Harrison County Sheriff's Office on Monday suggested that the actress likely died due to complications from stage 4 cancer. The open letter, which was posted on Scott Baio's official Facebook page, confirmed the report. "Erin and I met 4/22/1992 and parted ways 4/22/2017," her husband began the letter. He recalled that Erin "woke up and had about a dime size blood stain on her pillowcase" right after they got back from a trip to celebrate their wedding anniversary in November of last year. After a couple of days, they kept on finding more blood. "I get a flashlight and say let me look. It was not her tongue it was her tonsil on the left side. I thought it was tonsillitis," wrote Fleischmann. After getting a biopsy, doctors confirmed she had squamous cell carcinoma -- a common form of cancer. Shortly after, she started radiation and chemo -- five days a week on radiation and chemo only on Thursdays. However, Erin's condition slowly deteriorated: "It got so bad so fast. By the middle of February, Erin could no longer speak or eat or drink." Despite her poor health, the actress remained in good spirits. "She was still happy, she was active, she texted people on her phone all day," Steve added. The day before her [...]

Charlotte Parker2017-04-25T11:18:44-07:00April, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

Overwhelming support from GPs & dentists for boys to receive the HPV vaccination

Date: 4/24/2017 Source: http://www.hpvaction.org 97% of dentists and 94% of GPs would have their own sons vaccinated against the Human Papillomavirus (HPV), in a new survey published ahead of World Immunisation Week 24th-28th April. 97% of dentists and 94% of GPs believe that the national HPV vaccination programme should cover both boys and girls. 95% of GPs and dentists together said if they had a son they would want him to receive the HPV vaccination. The findings come as the Government’s vaccination advisory committee (JCVI) moves towards a decision on whether boys should be given the HPV vaccination. BRITISH MEDICAL ASSOCIATION Dr Andrew Green, a member of the BMA’s General Practitioners Committee (GPC), said: “If we want to see an end to some of the most aggressive and hard to treat cancers such as throat, head, neck and anal cancer, boys as well as girls must be given the HPV vaccination. It is ridiculous that people are still dying from these cancers when their life could have easily been saved by a simple injection.” BRITISH DENTAL ASSOCIATION Mick Armstrong, Chair of the BDA's Principal Executive Committee, said: “HPV is the leading cause of oro-pharyngeal cancers and men are just as likely to develop it as women so where is the logic – or fairness – in targeting protection to one section of the population? It is morally indefensible to allow people to contract cancer when prevention – the new NHS mantra – could be so cheap and easy. Cancers affecting [...]

Charlotte Parker2017-04-24T10:03:19-07:00April, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

HPV vaccine; cancer prevention

Source: www.nujournal.com Author: staff Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a sexually transmitted infection, of several strains, most associated with cervical cancers. The virus is so common that nearly all males and females have been infected at some time in their life. One in four is currently infected in the nation. Signs and symptoms of HPV are variable. Most will recover from the virus within two years without ever knowing they were infected, making HPV easy to spread. Occasionally, the virus lasts much longer in the body which can cause cells to change and lead to cancer. Fortunately, we have a vaccine to prevent cancer caused by HPV. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved three vaccines for HPV; Cervarix, Gardasil, and Gardasil 9. These vaccines are tested and proven to be safe and effective. Prevention is important with HPV. The vaccine should be administered before exposure to the virus for stronger protection against cervical, vaginal, vulvar, penile, and some mouth or throat cancers. (Gardasil and Gardasil 9 also prevent genital warts and anal cancer.) The best age to obtain maximum potential of the vaccine is at 11 or 12 years old. At this age, the body’s immune system is the most receptive to the vaccination’s virus-like particles and the body produces higher amounts of antibodies in defense, protecting the adolescent for his or her future. Both girls and boys should get the HPV vaccine. For ages 9-14, two doses – six to twelve months apart, are recommended. For 15-26 year [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2017-04-17T13:13:58-07:00April, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

Beating HPV-positive throat cancer

Source: www.huffingtonpost.com Author: Pamela Tom, Contributor National Oral, Head, and Neck Cancer Awareness Week is April 12-18, 2017 For at least two years, 47 year-old Rob Clinton of Rochester, NY, would choke on post nasal drip in the shower. He knew something was wrong in his throat but he didn’t feel any pain. Did he have cancer? Clinton smoked cigarettes for 30 years and worked in an auto body shop where he was regularly exposed to carcinogens, but he wasn’t experiencing the typical symptoms of throat cancer. These include hoarseness or a change in the voice, difficulty swallowing, a persistent sore throat, ear pain, a lump in the neck, cough, breathing problems, and unexplained weight loss. In November 2015, Clinton went to the dentist to have his teeth cleaned. His dentist felt Clinton’s swollen neck and recommended that he visit a medical doctor. Clinton heeded the advice and sought the opinion of an ear, nose, and throat specialist at Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, NY. The ENT doctor sent Clinton to have a CAT scan and when he scoped Clinton’s throat, the doctor said, “I see something in there.” What he saw was a tumor and there were a few other things going on too. The Diagnosis The biopsy showed that Clinton had Stage IVa oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) at the base of his tongue—and the cancer was HPV positive. HPV stands for the human papillomavirus and a recent survey found that more than 42% of Americans are infected [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2017-04-15T06:15:20-07:00April, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

Close to Half of American Adults Infected With HPV, Survey Finds

Source: www.nytimes.com Author: Nicholas Bakalar Date: 04/06/2017 More than 42 percent of Americans between the ages of 18 and 59 are infected with genital human papillomavirus, according to the first survey to look at the prevalence of the virus in the adult population. The report, published on Thursday by the National Center for Health Statistics, also found that certain high-risk strains of the virus infected 25.1 percent of men and 20.4 percent of women. These strains account for approximately 31,000 cases of cancer each year, other studies have shown. Two vaccines are effective in preventing sexually transmitted HPV infection, and researchers said the new data lend urgency to the drive to have adolescents vaccinated. “If we can get 11- and 12-year-olds to get the vaccine, we’ll make some progress,” said Geraldine McQuillan, an epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and lead author of the new report. “You need to give it before kids become sexually active, before they get infected,” Dr. McQuillan said. “By the time they’re in their mid-20s, people are infected and it’s too late. This is a vaccine against cancer — that’s the message.” She and her colleagues also found that 7.3 percent of Americans ages 18 to 69 were infected orally with vHPV, and 4 percent were infected with the high-risk strains that can cause cancers of the mouth and pharynx. HPV is a ubiquitous virus, the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States. About 40 strains of the virus are [...]

Charlotte Parker2017-04-10T09:43:46-07:00April, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

More than 1 In 5 Americans have a potentially cancer-causing HPV infection

Source: www.huffingtonpost.com Author: Erin Schumaker More than 42 percent of adults in the United States are infected with human papillomavirus ― and nearly 23 percent are infected with a high-risk strand of the virus that can cause cancer, according to a report published by the National Center for Health Statistics on Thursday. “We tend to overlook the fact that 20 percent of us are carrying the virus that can cause cancer (indluding oral cancer - OCF news editor),” Geraldine McQuillan, lead author of the report and an epidemiologist at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told The Washington Post. “People really need to realize that this is a serious concern.” The report, which examined U.S. adults ages 18 to 59, marks the first time the CDC has recorded HPV rates in men as well as women. There is no FDA-approved HPV test for men, but the CDC developed its own test for the research. “We did penile swabs which we tested for HPV DNA,” McQuillan told The Huffington Post. HPV is the most common sexually transmitted disease in the country, and nearly every sexually active American will be exposed to it by their early 20s. Although 90 percent of HPV infections clear the body within two years, that’s not always the case. High-risk strains are linked to cervix, vaginal, penile, anus and throat cancers, as well as genital warts. In fact, two high-risk strains, HPV-16 and -18, cause nearly all cervical cancer cases. Not all Americans have the [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2017-04-08T09:29:49-07:00April, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

Eight updates in oral head and neck cancer

Source: www.healio.com Author: staff Oral Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Week — led by the Head and Neck Cancer Alliances and supported by the American Academy of Otolaryngology — raises awareness and promotes cancer screenings throughout the United States. Approximately 110,000 people are diagnosed with oral head and neck cancers — which include cancers of the tongue, throat, voice box, nasal cavity, sinuses, lips, thyroid and salivary glands —each year in the United States. “The best chance of effectively treating these cancers is early on in the disease, and that’s why identification of tumors in their earliest stage improves a patient’s likelihood of survival and the patient’s ability to speak and swallow normally after treatment,” Ilya Likhterov, MD, assistant professor of otolaryngology at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, said in a press release from Mount Sinai. “While oral cancer is most commonly linked to long-time smokers and drinkers, younger patients can be affected even if they don’t have obvious risk factors. It is very important to have your mouth examined and pay attention to symptoms such as pain, bleeding, trouble swallowing, or if you notice any wound or ulcer in the mouth that is not healing quickly.” In conjunction with Oral Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Week, HemOnc Today presents eight updates in oral head and neck cancer. A combination of buparlisib (BKM120, Novartis) and paclitaxel may serve as an effective second-line therapy for patients with recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. Read more. [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2017-04-08T09:14:13-07:00April, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

Unmasked, Cancer Survivors Face The Symbol Of Their Torture

Source: www.npr.org Date: 09/28/2014 Author: Emily Siner Every 15 minutes, for 10 hours a day, another patient walks into the radiation room at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Nashville. Each picks up a plastic mesh mask, walks to a machine, and lies down on the table underneath. Nurses fit the mask over the patient's face and shoulders. And then they snap it down. "It was awful," says Barbara Blades, who was diagnosed with cancer in her lymph nodes and tongue nine years ago. "It was awful to have your head bolted to a table. Not being able to move. Not being able to move your head." "I can remember lying there, thinking that I'm glad I'm not claustrophobic," says Oscar Simmons, who had cancer in his tonsils. "I sort of fibbed to myself," says Bob Mead, who was diagnosed with salivary gland cancer in 2011. "I thought, if I had to, I could sit up and pull the mask off." Mead later realized he couldn't have pulled up his mask. It's designed to restrain his head so that the radiation targets the exact same spots — down to the millimeter — across several weeks. The mask is made out of a kind of white plastic mesh that forms to a patient's face. It's see-through, but it looks almost human, like a ghostly person frozen in place. Other survivors, like Steve Travis, who had tumors on his throat and neck and went through several weeks of radiation, say it felt comforting [...]

Charlotte Parker2017-04-03T11:01:43-07:00April, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

The scary reason doctors say kids need HPV vaccinations

Source: www.washingtonpost.com Author: Sarah Vander Schaaff When actor Michael Douglas told a reporter that his throat cancer was caused by HPV contracted through oral sex, two themes emerged that had nothing to do with celebrity gossip. The first was incredulity — since when was oral sex related to throat cancer? Even the reporter thought he had misheard. The second was embarrassment. This was too much information, not only about sexual behavior but also about one’s partners. Douglas apologized, and maybe the world was not ready to hear the greater truth behind what he was suggesting. That was four years ago. Today, there is no doubt in the medical community that the increase in HPV-related cancers such as the one Douglas described — which he later explained was found at the base of his tongue — is caused by sexual practices, in his case cunnilingus. And there is an urgency to better treat and prevent what is becoming the one type of oral cancer whose numbers are climbing, especially among men in the prime of their lives who have decades to live with the consequences of their cancer treatment. The number of people diagnosed with HPV-related oropharyngeal cancer, tumors found in the middle of the pharynx or throat including the back of the tongue, soft palate, sides of throat and tonsils — is relatively small — about 12,638 men and 3,100 women in the United States each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But these numbers are [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2017-04-02T11:30:23-07:00April, 2017|Oral Cancer News|